Dear All: The Apparition of St. Abanoub in the Church after his
name in Sydney, Australia. The Blessing of St. Abanoub and all
the Martyrs and Saints be with us all. Amen. Glory Always be to
our Lord in His Saints.
William Hanna
St. Louis, Missouri
| Saint
Abanoub by:
copticorthodox webmaster |
Abanoub was only twelve years old when he was
martyred by the Roman ruler. On July 31 of each
year, the Church celebrates his death, as the day
of his birth into eternal life. Abanoub's relics,
as well as the relics of many Christians who died
with him, are still preserved in St. Virgin Mary
and St. Abanoub church in Samanoud. It is also
said that the Holy Family visited that place
during their presence in Egypt. The church still
contains the well from which The Lord Jesus, St.
Mary, and St. Joseph drank. Numerous apparitions
and miracles still occur in that church until
today.
Abanoub was born in a town called Nehisa in the
Nile Delta. He was the only son of good Christian
parents who died when he was a young child.
At the age of twelve, Abanoub entered the church
and heard the priest asking the congregation to
remain faithful during the persecutions provoked
by Diocletian, the Roman Emperor. Abanoub received
the Holy Sacraments, then he prayed to God to
guide him to where he can confess his faith in
Jesus our Lord. After that Abanoub gave all his
possessions to the needy; then he set off to a
city called Samanoud, on foot.
While he was walking, he saw the Archangel Michael
in celestial glory. The sight was so extraordinary
that Abanoub fell to the ground, but the Archangel
raised him up, and told him that he must suffer
for three days in Samanoud and he would witness to
Jesus Christ in other places also.
Once in Samanoud, Abanoub went to the Roman ruler
and declared his faith openly. He also insulted
the ruler's idols. The ruler was infuriated and
gave orders to whip him on his belly. The soldiers
whipped Abanoub so hard that his intestines poured
out of his tummy. However, the Archangel Michael
miraculously healed him. The ruler then ordered
that he be sent to jail, with the other
Christians, who later were martyred for their
faith.
The following day, the ruler took Abanoub on a
boat to a city called Atrib, and as punishment, he
hung Abanoub upside down from the sail of the
boat. The soldiers, along with their ruler,
started to torture Abanoub. Suddenly, the soldiers
were blinded and the ruler was paralyzed. In their
agony they cried to him and said, "Please
Abanoub, pray to your God to heal us. For if we
are cured, we will become Christians."
St. Abanoub replied, "This will only happen
in Atrib, so that everyone there should know that
there is no other God but Christ." When they
arrived in Atrib, they were all healed, and they
cried with joy: "We are Christians. We
believe in the God of Abanoub". They then
took off their uniforms and threw them on the
ground in front of the ruler of Atrib. The
governor was outraged, and ordered their
execution.
In Atrib, Abanoub was tortured severely, sometimes
by whipping and sometimes by tying him to a steel
bed and igniting fire under him. However, the Lord
saved Abanoub. As a result of these miracles, many
onlookers became Christians, and received the
crown of martyrdom. The ruler then gave orders to
cut Abanoub's hands and feet. At that moment, the
Angel of the Lord came down from heaven, and
healed him. Abanoub then got up and walked in
front of everybody. Hundreds of people became
Christians as a result of that miracle.
Frustrated, the ruler called some of the best
magicians in the country, and asked them to help
him defeat Abanoub. They suggested that he be
thrown to the poisonous snakes. "Those snakes
have enough poison to kill two or three hundred
men." they said. So they threw Abanoub in a
cell with snakes, but God, who shut the mouths of
the lions at the time of Daniel, tamed the snakes
and they did not harm Abanoub. In the morning, and
to everybody's astonishment, St. Abanoub came out
from the cell alive. Then suddenly one of the
snakes crawled out of the cell and coiled itself
around the ruler's neck. The man cried, "In
the name of Jesus your God, be merciful on me and
don't let the snake harm me." The saint who
loved everyone - friend or enemy - just as the
Gospel commands, prayed from his heart, and then
ordered the snake to come down and not to hurt the
ruler. On that day, many people who were present
including the three magicians believed in Jesus.
Finally one of the ruler's advisers told him to
behead the saint and put an end to that episode.
So the ruler ordered the soldiers to kill St.
Abanoub with their swords. A faithful man called
St. Julius wrapped Abanoub's body in fine linen
and sent it to his hometown Nehisa where it was
buried. In 960 A.D., his body was transferred to
St. Virgin Mary's church in Samanoud where it
still lies until today.
May his prayers be with us all, and glory be to
God forever, Amen
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